| Cimolopteryx Temporal range: Maastrichtian | |
|---|---|
| |
| Cimolopteryx maxima illustration by Matthew Martyniuk | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Sauropsida |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Theropoda |
| Clade: | Aves |
| Clade: | Charadriiformes? |
| Family: | †Cimolopterygidae |
| Genus: | †Cimolopteryx Marsh, 1889 |
| Type species | |
| †Cimolopteryx rara Marsh, 1889 | |
| Other species | |
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
C. rara
| |
Cimolopteryx (Ancient Greek for "Cretaceous wing") is an extinct avian from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, and Wyoming, USA. It is possibly an early representative of the modern shorebirds.
Research history[]
Othniel Charles Marsh described Cimolopteryx rarus in 1889 (this name was later corrected to C. rara by R. W. Shufeldt in 1915).
Illustration of dorsal (a) and interal (b) views of a left caracoid of Cimolopteryx sp.
In 2011 Tim Tokaryk and Paul James reported a caracoid, specimen SMNH P1927.936, of an indeterminate C. rara-like individual from the Frenchman Formation of Saskatchewan, Canada. [1]
Classification[]
Two species are currently recognized: C. rara and C. maxima.[2]
In Popular Culture[]
Cimolopteryx perching on a beached Mosasaurus sp in concept art for Saurian.
Sources[]
- ↑ Tokaryk, Tim & James, Paul. (2011). Cimolopteryx sp. (Aves, Charadriiformes) from the Frenchman Formation (Maastrichtian), Saskatchewan. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. 26. 2729-2730. 10.1139/e89-233.
- ↑ "Paleobiology Database: Cimolopteryx". paleobiodb.org. Retrieved 30 April 2025.
- ↑ Saurian (2015, March 4). The shore of the Western Interior Seaway [Media]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/sauriangame/photos/a.213740702131704.1073741826.200506546788453/376923602480079/?type=3&theater